Review: It
IT is a fabulous horror movie about a group of kids who fight against a supernatural being (IT), who usually takes the shape of a clown, when it starts terrorizing their hometown of Derry, Maine. It is based on a book by Stephen King and there was also a miniseries made back in 1990. This movie covers the first half of the book when the group are children but there will be a sequel sometime in the future that will have them as adults.
I loved this movie so much. I was a fan of the original mini-series but since it had been so long since I watched it, I was able to view this reboot with fresh eyes. By knowing the story, it did spoil certain elements that I knew would or wouldn’t happen – but overall I didn’t feel like it ruined any part of the experience for me. It has made me excited to rewatch the mini-series and read the book to compare all components of this wicked tale.
Like with many reboots of older movies, the visuals were updated greatly and looked amazing. The effects never felt overdone and were used effectively in my opinion. I also enjoyed the new creepy look of IT as Pennywise the clown. In the mini-series it felt like they took a normal clown and made it creepy by the expressions and acting of Tim Curry. In this movie however, they started with a quite sinister clown who then has the creepy mannerisms of Bill Skarsgård to extend that even further.
In terms of horror, there were quite a few unnerving characters that chase and disturb the main protagonists. I enjoyed the variety of different scares since I was mostly just expecting Pennywise the clown to be the main version of IT we would be seeing. I blame my poor recollection of the original mini-series for this but it definitely worked out in my favor. The movie also did not have an abundance of gore but there were some notable scenes where there was much more blood in comparison to the original mini-series. I enjoyed that it was bloodier but again it never felt like it was too much. There was also a number of jump scares so if you’re not a fan watch out for those.
The movie takes place primarily in 1989 and the sets and costumes did an amazing job at portraying this. Even the styles of haircuts that the main characters had felt fitting to the time period. The young cast did a wonderful job of bringing their characters to life and making me as a viewer feel as though I was there with them. Out of the young actors I especially enjoyed Sophia Lillis’ performance. She had some emotionally tough scenes that I think she just nailed. Also Bill Skarsgård did an excellent job creating a fresh and disturbing clown for this reboot.
Overall I highly recommend this movie if you enjoy horror films. If you are a devout fan of the original mini-series or book it may not be for you since some changes were made; though it is worth noting that author Stephen King has given his stamp of approval to this reboot.
I give this 5 red balloons out of 5.